Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 741

This serialized Western adventure by William G. Patten features Violet Vane (Philip Vane Howard), a genteel professional gambler known as "the Velvet Sport"—an honest card player traveling the mining camps of the West. Riding toward Magic City on business, Vane discovers a note from a captive woman claiming her father Daniel Marden was murdered by villains who now hold her prisoner, planning to steal her inheritance and eliminate her. Intrigued by the mystery and past experience as an amateur detective in Coffin City, Vane resolves to investigate. Upon arriving at Magic City—a small mining camp—he encounters Sledge-hammer Sam, a local bully who ridicules his refined appearance. Through ventriloquism and witty mimicry, Vane humiliates the aggressor, then defeats him with a swift kick. The encounter establishes Vane's competence despite his dandyish exterior as the serial begins unfolding its central mystery.